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Sea Shepherd activists in stand-off with Japanese whalers

Anti-whaling group Sea Shepherd says Japanese whalers have harpooned a large minke in Australian Antarctic waters.

The group says the Yushin Maru No 2 harpooned the whale shortly before 6pm inside Australia's Antarctic Territory, some 92 kilometres from Australia's Davis research station.

The Sea Shepherd's SSS Bob Barker has positioned itself between the whale and the mothership Nisshin Maru.

"The Yushin Maru No 2 has made nine unsuccessful attempts to transfer the dead whale, coming as close as 10 metres to the Bob Barker," the Sea Shepherd said in a statement.

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"The Bob Barker has not moved."

Activists in small boats are protecting the anti-whaling ship against possible attempts to damage the vessel's propeller with long lines.

The group fears that once the minke is transferred to the whale factory ship, the Yushin Maru No 2 will move on to kill more whales.

Japan and some other countries do not accept Australia's claim over Australian Antarctic waters.

Opposition environment spokesman Greg Hunt said late on Friday that the government had "turned a deliberate blind eye", despite receiving multiple warnings about the possibility of a confrontation between the Japanese fleet and activists.

"Allegations that a whale has been slaughtered in Australian waters are deeply disturbing," he said.

"We are against whaling anywhere but if the Australian government is unable to protect our waters, that is a double blow."

The coalition has pledged to send a Customs vessel to monitor next year's hunt if it wins the September election.

Environment Minister Tony Burke has been approached for comment.

The confrontation comes the same day the US Supreme Court upheld an injunction ordering Sea Shepherd to keep away from Japanese whaling ships in the Southern Ocean.

Sea Shepherd appealed to the court to lift the injunction, issued in December, which bans the group and its former head Paul Watson from attacking or endangering the whaling ships.

The injunction was sought by the Institute of Cetacean Research which undertakes the Japanese government's whaling program through a loophole in International Whaling Commission rules that allows whales to be killed for research.